Jeremiah 17:8 - "For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river, and shall not see when heat cometh, but her leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit."

Freshwater Academy

Fresh Water Academy was founded in 2010. It is home to four lovely young ladies of learning and their dedicated teachers. Located in the wilds of Wyoming, the name Fresh Water Academy was chosen as a Western analogy to Christ. Just as He is the Living Water, and we must have Him to have eternal life, any desert dweller knows the importance of fresh water to life, both for self, and the nourishment of crops or livestock. By taking nourishment in God and His word, we strengthen our own relationship with Him, our faith, and the quality and abundance of our fruitfulness.

Our keystone verse is from Jeremiah, Chapter 17, Verse 8: "For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river, and shall not see when heat cometh, but her leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit."

The fruit that we speak of is mentioned in Galatians 5:22

"22But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, 23Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law."

And the heat could be anything we experience that might test our faith in God; trials and tribulations, relationships, anything that focuses our love and attention anywhere but on Him...

Monday, January 9, 2012

Homemade Soaps, Shampoos, etc.

I'm on a kick. I have been making my own laundry soap for awhile, and the cost is not even a remote comparison. And since it takes hardly any time at all, I couldn't justify not doing it!Well today I made my first batch of dish soap, and some shampoo and conditioner using the "No Poo" Method (yes, that sounds gross, I know). No more tangles for me! And the dish soap worked really well!Here are the recipes I gathered from various moms and groups on CafeMom...Homemade Dish Soap Recipe #2This version takes a little longer to make, but is even more frugal

1/4 cup soap flakes or soap shavings (any bar soap will do)

2 cups water

1 tsp lemon juice or white vinegar

Get out a sturdy sauce pan. Pour the water and soap fakes in and slowly heat it over medium heat. Stir the mixture and keep heating it until all the soap flakes melt into the water. DO NOT let the mixture come to a boil. Turn down the heat if needed.Allow the soap mixture to cool a bit, then stir in the lemon juice or vinegar. Keep it sitting in the pot until it is completely cooled, then pour it into an old dish soap bottle.With either of these two homemade dish soap recipes you can add a few drops of your favorite essential oil to make them smell better. I find that if I use the lemon juice, I don't need the essential oil. Bottled lemon juice works just fine.I used lemon juice. And doubling the recipe exactly filled my dish soap bottle, with enough leftover to do a load immediately!NoPoo Hairwashing and Conditioning:I used an old shampoo bottle, and an empty water bottle.The water bottle was 32 oz., so I filled it with 2 Tablespoons of baking soda (funnel) and water. Shake it up before each use, Use a small handful and massage into scalp (don't worry about the ends, just the scalp), then rinse and follow up with the following.32. oz bottle, filled with 2 Tablespoons apple cider vinegar and water. Shake well, put on ends of hair, then rinse. I was tangle free, and if you know me, that's an accomplishment!

Heat 4 cups of water to almost boil in a heavy pan.Shave bar of soap into water until dissolved.Pore 3 gallons of hot water into bucket.Add Soap and Water Mixture.Stir Well.Add 1 cup washing soda.Stir Well.Be sure to wear rubber gloves before adding borax.Add 1/2 cup borax.Stir well.Let cool over night before using!Be sure to add ingredients one at a time and stir well after each addition and occasionally as final mix cools.Use 1 cup per load of laundry.

You don't have to wear rubber gloves but be sure you don't get borax on your faceDo you have any homemade recipes to share?